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Jumpgate: Developer Journal

Steve "Istvan" Hartmeyer, a developer on Jumpgate, has written an insider's perspective developer journal on the evolution of NetDevil's space-based MMORPG over the last few years.

image Jumpgate's development over the past few years can be split into two phases: a post-release phase and a post-expansion phase. During the post-release phase, NetDevil spent most of its energy ensuring the company's survival, since the original US publisher for Jumpgate, 3DO, relinquished control of the game back to us in late 2001, and in fact went bankrupt shortly thereafter. To keep the company going, NetDevil obtained a contract with NCSoft to develop a new MMORPG title, Auto Assault (now nearing release), while a limited development team continued to maintain Jumpgate.

As NetDevil focused on our Auto Assault contract and started a growth surge, the remaining Jumpgate team produced "Episode 2: 'Attack of the Conflux'", which released in March 2003. This expansion added player-owned stations (Jumpgate's equivalent of housing seen in other MMORPGs), more ships to fly, more AI features, piracy support, and numerous smaller enhancements to the game.

You can read the full journal here.

Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios

Comments

  • acmtalkacmtalk Member Posts: 405

    hehe Didn't know about this game... IS it like eve?

    image

  • MagicStarMagicStar Member Posts: 380

    I would like to thank the editor for mentioning this game.

    And no Jumpgate is more like a space flight mmo apart from eve. EVE online is a space RPG. So don't those two mmos are tottaly different games dispite that they have the same settings.

    For more information about this game from a fan, goto:
    http://jumpgate.cabspace.com (It's got tutorials on how to get started for newcomers.)

    The official sites:
    http://www.jossh.com

    http://www.themis-group.com/jg/

    ----------------------
    Give me lights give me action. With a touch of a button!

  • DellyoDellyo Member Posts: 16

    four(or four) things that map help jumpgate get online players back to normal:

    1. advertising
    2. special offers(like $6.95 for the first three months)
    3. revamped jossh site to make it look eye-candy and official video tutorials enbedded in .swf
    4. updated graphics to include the following:
    * specular light maps
    * glow maps
    * parallax mapping
    * shaders
    * anti-aliasing software wise
    * glooms
    * dynamic lighting
    * vertex shading
    * or the ability to play in window mode.

    and then boom, you have an up-todate mmo here and get a lot more playas that way.

  • ElnatorElnator Member Posts: 6,077

    They seriously need to re-do the graphics for the conflux.  My single biggest turn-off when I played Jumpgate was the graphics for those suckers.  Seriously... neon pink seafood flying in space just never did anything for me.

    As far as advanced graphics all the stuff people mentioned can be forced at the video card so it's not absolutely essential that the game do it (though it would be nice).

    Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragons Online.
    Sig image Pending
    Still in: A couple Betas

  • vorlon31vorlon31 Member Posts: 18

    Jumpgate's graphics may appear dated and they are, but like the saying goes, dont judge a book by its cover.

    Jumpgate has something in abundance that no other game I have played can boast in the same quantity.

    'Gameplay'

    Ive been logging in to it for a few months short of four years now and have every intention of continuing to do so. If nearly four years playing the same game seems excessive, there are some active players who date back to Jumpgates early beta testing days and have been a constant presence in the game for nigh on seven years!! Why? Because JG feels right, it fly's right and it will get under your skin too if you let it.

    Now I'm no pvp'r, its not my thing but... when it comes to pvp, if "point - click - select - kill target" is your cup of tea then JG wont be to your liking im sure. However, if you like a challenge, if you can handle all the differing complexities of ship to ship combat where skill IS the deciding factor - not level or time earned psuedoskills, then JG could be the game for you. There is no cut and dry outcome to any encounter - IF you have the skills - you will prevail, if you dont - then its just a matter of practice until you do.

    Then theres the Conflux to consider... But if you want my opinion on them youll have to log in and ask me. Im easy to spot - just follow the fluxfire.

  • shmigshmig Member Posts: 43

    I tried this game about 1.5 years ago, for about a month total. To be honest, this game has everything that Eve lacks. Eve is one those games that you can play while watching the kids, cooking dinner, reading a book, or whatever, because you spend most of your time in game in-transit from one system to another on autopilot. In Jumpgate, you actually have to fly your ship and the engine they use is absolutely amazing. I looked forward to every time i had to dock because it was fun and challenging. It was even mor fun when you have a bunch of guys chasing you down and you have to dock quickly. Fighting was even more fun, especially the special-event battles that occured in the simulator.

    However, Eve has alot of things that Jumpgate should have. For example, I absolutely love Eve's economy. I think EVERY game should learn from Eve's success in having a real economy with all the functions of supply/demand, market volatility, and player-control. Eve also has the graphics, though I would argue that even Eve's could use some updating. They also have the player base, a very large universes, and other great things.

    But there are certain things that both lack - missions. Jumpgate's missions are very cookie-cutter in design. If i remember right, there's only like 3 kinds of missions (recon, kill, and transport). Eve isn't much better; there are missions with fairly unique stories but in the end you're doing one of two things, kill and transport.

    Both of these games also focus on their strength of PvP battles. The biggest difference between these two games in that respect are that in Eve the battle is determined in many respect on what you are flying (with reason, you still have to tell your ship to shoot or fire missles, but in the end it depends on what ship you have and how you outfit it), where in Jumpgate it's almost entirely determined by HOW you fly your ship. I remember hearing all kinds of stories about someone flying the littlest ship and still being able to take on the big guys, in Jumpgate. Don't get me wrong, you still have to outfit your ship in jumpage, but the best guns are useless if you can't aim.

    In the end I think everyone should give Jumpgate a try, and try not to compare it to Eve or any other RPG. The closest thing to jumpgate out there might be Crimson Skies (think that's what it's called, some flight-sim) for Xbox, or some other online flight sim you may find out there. What really makes Jumpgate truly stand out is the fact that it's a spaceflight-sim: no falling to the ground, and no stopping without opposing-thrust. So yeah, try this game. All you WoW/Eve players will enjoy the break, I do.

  • AmbrosiusAmbrosius Member Posts: 75

    Jumpgate is an awesome game.  The thing that makes it great and the biggest barrier to success is that it is skill-based.  RPG players are used to "acquiring skills" -- Jumpgate makes you use you own skills:  whether it's combing through data to understand economic needs and opportunities or situational awareness in combat (much more important than "twitch").

    The graphics are dated but the flight engine absolutely rocks.  The biggest thing JG needs is an major influx of players.

    -- Ambros.

  • kwipkwip Member Posts: 4

    Yeah, put me in the Jumpgate fanclub. Although I haven't played it since last year (one of these days I'll get back, I swear!), it's a amazingly fun game. None of that point and click rubbish that other games seem to think is "piloting" - JG makes you live or die (or get very wealthy) by your own skills. And the admin-run events are a blast. I'll never forget the great fun we had scrambling to decode encrypted messages from the enemy.

    "If chaos were a thunderstorm, he'd be the sort to stand on a mountaintop in copper armor and yell, 'All Gods are bastards!'" --Terry Pratchett
    "Reality continues to ruin my life." --Calvin

  • SupermaxSupermax Member Posts: 27

    I've been playing JumpGate since May 2002, first on the EU servers and since Summer 2005 on the merged server, and although I'm taking a short break every now and then, I wouldn't think of leaving the game completely, even though most events take place at times when most Europeans have to be in bed already.

    But like most others I like the flight engine as well as the fact that every player can make a difference in a persistent universe. There aren't that many Space/SciFi-themed MMOGs around, and as far as I know none of the others I know offers the same flying experience as JumpGate.

    Without doubt, the graphics leave a lot to be desired (most of the models and textures are just poor), and the game still suffers from bad design decisions that were made back when Episode 2 was released. But Istvan works hard to revert those flaws where possible while at the same time trying to implement new and improve on existing features.

    I can only recommend that game to anyone who used to play the classic "Elite" and its sequels - it's definitely worth it.

  • ElnatorElnator Member Posts: 6,077


    Originally posted by vorlon31
    Jumpgate's graphics may appear dated and they are, but like the saying goes, dont judge a book by its cover.
    Jumpgate has something in abundance that no other game I have played can boast in the same quantity.
    'Gameplay'
    Ive been logging in to it for a few months short of four years now and have every intention of continuing to do so. If nearly four years playing the same game seems excessive, there are some active players who date back to Jumpgates early beta testing days and have been a constant presence in the game for nigh on seven years!! Why? Because JG feels right, it fly's right and it will get under your skin too if you let it.
    Now I'm no pvp'r, its not my thing but... when it comes to pvp, if "point - click - select - kill target" is your cup of tea then JG wont be to your liking im sure. However, if you like a challenge, if you can handle all the differing complexities of ship to ship combat where skill IS the deciding factor - not level or time earned psuedoskills, then JG could be the game for you. There is no cut and dry outcome to any encounter - IF you have the skills - you will prevail, if you dont - then its just a matter of practice until you do.
    Then theres the Conflux to consider... But if you want my opinion on them youll have to log in and ask me. Im easy to spot - just follow the fluxfire.

    For me it boils down to this:
    Yes the gameplay is pretty good but it's not *enough* to overcome it's:
    1) Lack of a sizeable player base. At peak time it has under 100 players online.
    2) Poor graphics for enemy AI. Very poor. The spaceship and space station art in jumpgate really isn't all that bad, I can overlook that. But when you go out to fight the conflux it's REALLY annoying to be fighting pink seafood.

    Sorry, that is the 2 big things that killed JG for me. Other than those two items it's a very solid game and a lot of fun. I just prefer a larger player base. The "Conflux" REALLY baffle me too because the rest of the graphics in the game are SO MUCH BETTER than them. It's like the devs went 'we need badguys for players to fight when they're not PVP'ing" Oh hey, lemme scan in these doodles I did last night...."

    That's how LAME the conflux feel when I fight them. It just doesn't make sense that the player ships actually look pretty good but the Conflux look like something a 10 year old might put in their game.

    The small player base is worse though. In Jumpgate you feel VERY alone when you're out in space typically... there are fewer people playing at any given time than most MUDS I played in college.

    Currently Playing: Dungeons and Dragons Online.
    Sig image Pending
    Still in: A couple Betas

  • MagicStarMagicStar Member Posts: 380

    Well the reason why the online numbers are low is because it is a niche game. Other MMO players don't quite understand this.

    It's also my dream to have hundreds of players online as well but I don't that that will happen in the future.

    I really don't mind about having AI like conflux in the game as long as they are a very minority part of the game and not the actual story line.

    It's just bad that the developers's expansion pack leaned more towards to cearbears because.. with the "Attack of the Conflux" title, everyone who PvPs and played roles like Pirates, Factionalism, etc, had to drop what they are doing to simply fight AI which don't push a number.

    Well there won't be any luck with Jumpgate anytime soon eventhough its my favorite game simply put, netdevil can't afford to have more people working in Jumpgate.

    ----------------------
    Give me lights give me action. With a touch of a button!

  • SupermaxSupermax Member Posts: 27

    As far as I am aware, Istvan has spent some time to ease the impact the Conflux AI has on PvP, such as allowing certain sectors to be cleared of Conflux drones and stay clear for some time after, and I believe recent and upcoming changes in Conflux AI will continue that effort.

    Personally I don't care how the Conflux look (though it would be nice if their supposedly organic hulls were animated accordingly); the Vorlon ships from Babylon 5 reminded me of giant squid too...

  • soulabductersoulabducter Member Posts: 10

    this game look awsome, going to try it out!

    How can I have missed it... :p

  • LaVeyLaVey Member Posts: 2

    I'm one of those who been playing for 7 years. Started out beta testing it 1999, and haven't had a single break during the years.

    I know graphics not the best, perhaps the AI look bad, numbers down compared to when it went gold. But it's still Jumpgate, and I just can't grow tired of it. There's always something to do, Trading or Mining... perhaps escort a trader or miner to protect them from Conflux.

    The community is the best one I ever met. Not many are left since I started, but I've seen some old faces back again and that's just great.

    It is a niche game, but those who loved and played Elite, Wing Commander, Privateer... will feel like home.

    Ek`rah skabak erg Thrak`Kilrah maks Rag`nith.

  • MagicStarMagicStar Member Posts: 380

    Ah thank you.

    Wish this there was a way the people at netdevil can give special offers to Jumpgate.

    ----------------------
    Give me lights give me action. With a touch of a button!

  • KyddKydd Member Posts: 2

    image I've played jumpgate and enjoyed it greatly but eve lured me over?

    have read this news i may be going back!

    fantasic!image

    terry m watts

  • AmbrosiusAmbrosius Member Posts: 75
    If you want to get a sense of what's going on in Jumpgate, you might want to check out Darkspace Dispatch -- the unofficial IC/OOC Jumpgate newsletter.

    -- Ambros.

  • ChivalryyChivalryy Member Posts: 1

    Another old school Jumpgate pilot here,,,,,, :)     on both the EU and US servers... and i can only repeat what many others have said.... even to this day,, ive never found a game that sucked me in as much as this did,,,,, at its hieght it was truly a game that was amazing to play and had by far the best community of any game ive ever played,,,     i actualy only found out 2 days ago that the EU serverr had closed...   brought a lump to my throat i can tell yah...  spent so many happy times playing this game and made so many good friends..

    As it stands today though.. could defo use a graphical over haul.... realy looks dated.... and in this day and age ppl seem to demand graphics over gameplay,,,,, the flight engine is still amazing...  could`nt improve upon it even now.. its perfect as is :)

    Dunno what there charging a month to play this now on the US servers,, but id be curious as i dont think as the game stands it can compete with the vast hosts of other online games available.. but id love to nip back in and see how it is now :)

    Easily the game that stands out most in my memory of Online games.... and ive played pretty much all of em :)

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